A fortnight ago, when Class XI students at the Government Higher Secondary School at Kurusilapattu near Tirupattur were getting ready for the next class, the headmaster introduced a bespectacled man to them. He started teaching English grammar until the bell rang for the next class.
He was not their English teacher. He was Tirupattur Collector Amar Kushwaha, who had visited the school, a polling booth, to check the arrangements for the local bodies elections. “Whenever I visit schools, I never fail to interact with students. If time permits, I also take English classes,” Mr. Kushwaha told The Hindu .
A native of the backward Siddharthnagar district in Uttar Pradesh, Mr. Kushwaha did his schooling in his village before completing science graduation. He belongs to the 2012 batch of the Indian Administrative Service and started out as a trainee officer in Tiruvallur before becoming Sub-Collector in Sivakasi. At the third mega vaccination camp held on Sunday, Kushwaha’s wife, Shivalika, took her second dose at Mookkannoor village, inspiring tribal villagers.
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Vellore Collector P. Kumaravel Pandian never hesitates to hop on a bike if that is the only way to reach the remote tribal villages in Jawadhu Hills. Tribal villages, including Nelkani, Thanimarathur, Nellampattu and Kollyam, in the Anaicut panchayat union are inaccessible. More than 40 permanent vaccination camps have been set up in these areas. Door-to-door vaccination is also done. “I gave rural development officials four days to build temporary roads to these villages. I will make my road trip to these villages again,” Mr. Pandian says.
A native of Ottanchatiram, Mr. Pandian belongs to the 2014 batch and served as Deputy Commissioner (Works), Greater Chennai Corporation, and Commissioner of the Coimbatore Corporation before taking charge as Vellore Collector in June this year.
In neighbouring Ranipet district, residents got a new Superintendent of Police a month ago. In an effort to instil confidence in residents, especially those in remote areas, and also boost the morale of her colleagues, Deepa Satyan does night rounds between 10 p.m and 6 a.m. at least thrice a week, covering Arakkonam, Walajah and Arcot.
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According to norms, night rounds are restricted to the DSP, with each police station allotting one Sub-Inspector every day. Ranipet has 25 police stations.
A native of Thiruvananthapuram, Ms. Deepa completed MBBS in the city before taking up the civil service. She belongs to the 2015 batch and was first posted as ASP for Vriddhachalam.